1. Field of the Invention
The invention is generally related to electronic devices such as mobile phones, and particularly to a bracket for removably holding the phone, the bracket including a fixing means for securely holding the device in the bracket. The invention can be used, for example, in fixing a mobile phone to an inside surface of a automobile. More specifically, this invention relates to a passive telephone holder with a single piece pushing/locking mechanism adapted to interact with the back surface of the telephone battery cover to secure a telephone firmly in place in the holder.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The total number of cordless phones, personal handy phone systems and mobile telephones in general use worldwide is rapidly increasing. Since a large percentage of these telephones are used within automobiles or other moving vehicles while the user is driving, many of these devices have been provided with means to attach these devices to an appropriate position in a vehicle compartment in order to hold the mobile telephone securely while the vehicle is moving thereby permitting a driver or passenger to easily and safely use the phone. One particular safety aspect of the use of these phones in moving vehicles concerns the question of how to easily place and carry the mobile phone securely in a holder within the vehicle, while at the same time allowing the user easy access to remove the phone from the holder and use it.
From the users point of view it desirable that a mobile phone be securely held in the mobile phone holder during driving, and also be conveniently, easily, and quickly detachable from the holder with one hand, permitting the user to operate the vehicle with the other. The mobile telephone should also be easily and quickly and securely replaceable back into the holder with one hand, when the user is finished using the mobile telephone. Additionally, from the design point of view, it would be an added advantage if the telephone also uses a battery that does not require special exterior flat surfaces. From the manufacturer""s point of view, it is further desirable that the phone holder be capable of providing all these advantages and at the same time be light weight and simple in construction, generally allow the industrial designer more freedom for styling the telephone, and also permit the phone designers to design telephones having additional inside space.
Presently existing mobile telephone holders may offer one or more of the above listed advantages, but they simply do not provide all of the above advantages together in a mobile telephone holder. It would definitely lead to a unique situation if all the above described advantages could be obtained in the same product.
EP0545670B1 illustrates a design for a telephone holder including a cradle portion formed to receive al telephone; a mounting portion; the cradle portion being movably mounted on the mounting portion; and retaining means that exerts a retaining force on a telephone. The disclosed design for a telephone holder does not include release buttons nor a mechanism for pushing away thee telephone. It appears that releasing the telephone from its holder takes place by simply pulling the telephone. In the present invention in order to release a locked telephone, a user has to push a release button associated with the car holder.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,825,874 illustrates a mobile telephone holder having a frame and a combined latching and ejecting mechanism. Due to the simplicity of the mechanism disclosed, there is no linkage between the two illustrated release buttons on the telephone holder. As a result, users have to press both buttons simultaneously, to release both side locks of the phone, thereby completely unlocking the phone from the holder. Another example of a known telephone car holder is given in U.S. Pat. No. 5,907,796.
Another known telephone holder usable in a car is disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/189,614, filed Nov. 9, 1998 and assigned to Nokia. The application describes a telephone holder, especially a holder installable on a car in which a phone is kept during driving. The holder has an enclosed structure and it comprises a cup-like inner shell part, an outer shell part and a locking element fitted in the cavity between the shell parts and movable with respect to the shell parts, a thrust block and locking claw in the locking element being located in a hole formed in the inner shell part. The phone is locked into the holder with a turning movement wherein the phone pushes the thrust block and at the same time a guiding surface in the outer shell part wedges the locking claw into a hollow on the side of the phone. The pushing movement is directed against the end of a double torsion spring in the holder so that the middle part of the spring turns a shaft and thus locks the locking element into the locked position. The phone is released from the locked position by pressing the shaft by means of a push lever wherein the locking element is freed from a catch and the end of the process returns the phone to the initial position so that it can be removed from the holder.
Unlike the telephone holders described by the prior art, the present invention is for a very unique structure for a telephone which simply makes use of the back surface of the phone battery instead of special side features for interaction between the phone and the car holder mechanism. With the features of the present invention, there is no need to make any special exterior flat surface at the two sides of the battery. The car holder simply interacts with the back surface of the phone battery for activating the holder mechanism. There is no known telephone holder that interacts with the rear surface of the phone battery for activating the phone holder mechanism in order to lock the phone, while the phone is turning about a pivot point in the holder.
Without the need to reserve special exterior flat surface at the two sides of the phone battery, industrial designers have larger degrees of freedom in product design, while mechanical designers can get more useable space inside the phone. The assembly of the car phone holder mechanism is also simplified and overall assembly time is reduced, thereby reducing the overall manufacturing costs associated with a phone holder.
The present invention relates to a holder with a locking mechanism for a telephone, the holder further including a single piece pushing/locking element that is adapted to act as both (i) a pushing element pushing against a rear portion of the telephone, and (ii) a locking element for locking the telephone to the holder, whereby as the rear portion of the telephone pushes against the pushing element portion of the single piece pushing/locking element the locking element portion of the single piece pushing/locking element substantially simultaneously is pushed inwards towards the phone thereby locking the phone in the holder with locking hooks located at the end portions thereof.
The present invention also features a locking mechanism which includes a locking element (i.e. one portion of the pushing/locking element) which, due to it being part of a single piece mechanism, i.e. the xe2x80x9csingle piecexe2x80x9d feature, it can in addition to its locking feature, push away the phone from the holder and/or be activated by the phone by pushing against the backside of the phone battery. Since the locking element is part of a single piece part which includes a pushing feature as described below, it also helps reduce the assembly lead-time for the holder structure, thereby reducing overall manufacturing costs.
Furthermore, in accordance with the features of the present invention, in order to activate the single piece pushing/locking element, a push button mechanism and slider system is featured whereas when at least one of the push-buttons is pushed inwardly, the slider system is consequently brought to a position that it releases the locking element of the single piece pushing/locking element thereby unlocking the phone from the phone holder while at the same time all push buttons automatically move in an inward direction.